Another Day, Another Country

With such a late night, no one woke up until about 9:30 a.m. and by the time we'd searched online, we realized that the ferry ride to Uruguay left at 10:00--not enough time--and the next ferry at noon appeared to be sold out. So trying our luck, we went down at 11 anyway and tried to get on the noon ferry to Colinai, Uruguay. As luck would have it, the last three tickets were sold to us. It might have been our charm, or it might have been that Max was willing to flash his toothless grin--he'd lost a crown on his front teeth the night before eating ice cream (I know, I know...ice cream, but that was his story and he's sticking to it). Regretfully on his part, some of the pictures from that day will show him without a tooth. Oh well, such is the price of face and ice cream.

MAYBERRY RFD IN URUGUAY

After a one hour high speed boat ride across the Plate River (supposedly the widest river in the world--you'd think you were crossing the ocean as you can't see the other side), we arrived at a small town called Colonia, Uruguay--the oldest settlement in Uruguay. The streets are cobble stoned and tree lined. The homes are small, quaint and attractive. It's clean and just LOW KEY. I expected to see Goober and Barney playing checkers in the town square. Aunt Bea serving warm cookied at the cafe. (we did see a couple of Otis').

We were walking down the street mid day and thought it must have been Siesta time because it was so quiet. It wasn't, but it's just a quiet little town (all except for the one commercial street, that has all the business on it and that street gets quit lively at night time).

We did a little shopping (junk mostly), and then ate a very good meal. Mark's mother had been here a couple of days earlier and had rented a golf cart to zoom around the area, so we did the same Basically it took us to the tourist sites (the light house and even an old car now used as a flower pot) and finally out of town a bit where we ended up at the Sheraton Resort and Mark and I had a nice massage while Max returned the golf cart. Another meal and can you believe it, it was already 10:30 and time for us to catch our 11:30 p.m. ferry back to the Buenos Aires. (there's a one hour time change, so we left Uruguay at 11:30 and arrived at 11:30).

YOU WANNA SLEEP, BUT...

I got back to the B & B by 12:30, but for some reason could not sleep...until about 3 pm. UGH...so I only ended up with one hour of sleep before we had to leave for the airport and make our 6 :10 flight back to Rio.

All in all, a VERY FUN five days in Argentina and Uruguay. Could I live there, a resounding YES. Easily. Buenos Aires has a temperature and climate feel similar to Utah. It's very metropolitan, quite clean, and organized and appeared very safe. Oh and it appears to be cheaper to live there than in Rio.

But I'm off to my city of right now...Rio. Night.

I´ll Take the Flower Sculpture, not the Flower in Your Mouth

Each morning we seem to rise a little later than the next. Which might mean that we´re becoming Argentinian. You see, everything is LATE here. They apparently start their business day around 9:30 or 10:00 a..m. They eat later lunches and they don´t have dinner until around 9 p.m. So if you´re going out to a club after, well that gets started around 1 a.m. and you can see how the cycle repeats itself.

That time frame is a tough one for me. I like the day to end around 10 - midnight and the day to begin around 7 - 8 .m. So yeah, it´s been a bit of getting used to here.

PARKS & MUSEUMS

We took a subway ride to the Palermo area of the city--supposedly a very fashionable and trendy place to live. And it is a nice area...tree-lined streets, nice homes and apartment buildings, and restaurants everywhere, etc. We walked through the botanical gardens (so so), then a very lackluster Japense Gardens, and was relieved to head to their version of the Museum of Modern Art for some A/C´d culture...which was very nice, although it was showing an exhibit of Andy Warhol...which was cool, but I´d seen some of his works already. But some pieces were really innovative and interesting.

From there, we walked to this HUGE flower sculputer in which the pedals open and close daily. I liked this a lot. The parks in this city are very impressive and they have a lot of statues everywhere. It´s a park and statue city from what I can tell.

DINNER and DANCING

We headed back for a quick nap, then headed back out for dinner and a show at this Tango Theater. To be honest, I was kind of dreading this--but being the good travel companion, didn´t want to raise a fuss. However, I have to admit, I really enjoyed it. The place/theater was very nice, not too tacky, and the dancing was spectacular...who knew people could move their feet that quickly. The tango is ALL about the feet, and emotion, and lust, and desire, which really come through in the feet--I know, hard to explain, but it does work and it was very cool. AND NOT ONCE did they put a rose in anyone´s month--to my utter delight.

Then we went to a couple of dancing clubs but to be honest, I was pretty tired by then and really just wanted to come home and sleep...which we finally did around 3 a.m. I know, I know...but dinner and the show didn´t end til about 1 a.m. See what I said about this city running on a slow time table.

So hitting the bed and sleeping well in anticipation of heading to Uraguay for a day trip.

Night.

Six Feet Under In Style

So...another day in the beautiful city of Buenos Aires.

PEOPLE CRYING OVER EVITA´S GRAVE

After some continental breakfast, we headed out to see if we could find the airline office and change our tickets from 6 a.m. on sunday to a later flight. After looking for a bit of time, and realizing finally we had been given wrong direction, we gave up and headed to the one of the most famous cemeteries in the world, Recoleta.

There in is bured Evita Peron. Her family mosulium wasn´t that spectacular, but she is definitely the DRAW at this cemetery. But the cemetery is so cool. Just this mini buildings housing generations of caskets of the family dead. And so eleaborate. It was really beautiful.

Interesting enough, there was an actual funeral arriving when we did, so about 50 people were dressed in their best sunday best while the other 200 people mulling around the place were in their tourist worst. :) An interesting mix.

After a light lunch at a restaurant that had one menu, but they charged about 10-15% more for any item on it if it was served outside on the patio versus inside (go figure), under this TREMENDOUS Banhan tree..wow, so big and beautiful, we were ready for the afternoon.

PAINT A HOUSE--ATTRACT A TOURIST

From there, we headed to the Hyatt (Mark´s mother is staying there), mostly to use the bathroom, but also because they´ve attached an old palace to the hotel and Mark´s Mother insisted we take a look.

Then a taxi ride to an area of the city where someone came up with this great idea to paint the neighborhood apts/houses various bright colors, and WALLAH, it´s now a tourist trap. With all the traditional touristy trash to buy. I bought NOTHING. We wandered around here for a bit, watched some people doing Tango dancing for tips, ate a little, then the took a city bus back to the downtown area to again try and exchange our tickets.

SOLD OUT

All that wandering around the city to try and find Aerolinhas Argentina, when we finally did, they were all sold out of all other flights on Sunday. So I guess we´ll either not be getting much sleep Saturday night, or we just won´t sleep until we head to the airport at 4 a.m. UGHHHH!

We did do quite a bit of leather shopping, although so far only Max had made a real leather purchase (riding boots, as he´s thinking of taking up riding again). I do like the smell of leather shops though.

ARGENTINIAN BEEF

After a quick nap and shower back at the B & B, we headed up to the Palermo area for dinner at this Steak House with Mark´s mother and her friend. The dinner was BIG, and the meat portions HUGE, and good, but not great. (I made the mistake ording my Ribeye steak Medium Well done--it came back a bit OVER COOKED). But that´s my mistake for ordering it that way.

We´d planned to come back to the apt and then head out for some night life, but by the time Mark was able to look something up on the ineternet, I´d crashed...

Another fun day in BA.

What a Beautiful City--Buenos Aires

So I´ve been in Buenos Aires for two days now. And let me say this start gets started LATE.

TUESDAY

Went to the airport and was informed by Aerolinhas Argentinas that the reservation I was sure I made, wasn´t really made. So I could buy a ticket there for flight with Max or I could buy the flight coming with Mark at 9 p.m. The morning flight was $200 more expensive, so I opted to head back home and wait out the day for the night flight.

We did take off--about an hour late--but arrived in Buenos Aires around midnight and into our Bed and Breakfast around 1 p.m. It´s a converted apartment, about five quest rooms, and has a nice, clean, older feel to it. I´m becoming a fan of bed and breakfasts. They do most things a hotel will for you, but smaller and serve a free continental breakfast each morning. Anyway, here we are.

WEDNESDAY

Since we´d arrived rather late that night, we didn´t really get going from the hotel around 10 a.m. Mark found a 3 days in Buenos Aires promo plan from american airlines online and we followed it. Went to the Pink House (called because about 100 years ago one of the leaders painted the building PINK to satisfy two fighting political parties...the red party and the white party. Thus the PINK house which seemed to satisfy them. Then we went to a couple more sites, the renovated warf area (see pictures), this really cool building in which the lower floors were architecurally designed after the HELL in Dantes Inferno and the upper floors represented Paradise and Heaven. At the top of the building, and after climing two floors of very narrow and winding starwells, we made it to a light house look out tower and could see the entire city (21 floors up). But it was so small and surrounded in glass that you could very off balance by the moving clouds. The pictures turned out well, but I was happy to descend to hell, so to speak.

We saw many old churches, BEAUTIFUL Architecture more in the mode of something you´d expect in Paris than South America, and ended the day with an interesting TASTER menu meal that lasted us 4 hours and cost just about as much as a VERY fine meal in NYC--a lot but it what an experience and really, it was good AND filling--surprising EVEN to me.

I slept well and was ready for the day today, which I´ll have to tell you tomorrow because Mark´s mother and her friend are here in Buenos Aires as well and are waiting for us to eat at one of the city´s best steak houses--a change from last night for sure.

We're Not "Buying" in Kansas Anymore

OK...so either with fingers crossed or not, I think I got the approval to buy the apartment. The Condo Association came back and asked for another $4,500 in the asking price (I think to pay the realtors...) but I still think it's a good deal and if I accept, I can buy it.

Here's a link to Google Map showing the location of the apartment. Check it out.

Praça Vereador Rocha Leão - Rio de Janeiro - RJ
Link: <http://maps.google.com.br/maps?hl=pt-BR&q=Pra%C3%A7a+Vereador+Rocha+Le%C3%A3o+-+Rio+de+Janeiro+-+RJ&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=FQuVof4dD_ls_Q&split=0&hq=&hnear=Pra%C3%A7a+Vereador+Rocha+Le%C3%A3o+-+Rio+de+Janeiro+-+RJ&ll=-22.968094,-43.190002&spn=0.010431,0.015879&t=h&z=16>

and if you wanna get a bigger perspective of where it is in relation to the beaches and city overall (well the South Zone area), check this one out.

Praça Vereador Rocha Leão - Rio de Janeiro - RJ

Link: <http://maps.google.com.br/maps?hl=pt-BR&q=Pra%C3%A7a+Vereador+Rocha+Le%C3%A3o+-+Rio+de+Janeiro+-+RJ&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=FQuVof4dD_ls_Q&split=0&hq=&hnear=Pra%C3%A7a+Vereador+Rocha+Le%C3%A3o+-+Rio+de+Janeiro+-+RJ&ll=-22.977439,-43.190002&spn=0.041723,0.063515&t=h&z=14>

So the wheels are in motion. I contacted a real estate attorney that had worked with a friend in closing his deal. She's going to start researching everything tomorrow. I wanna make sure EVERYTHING is legal and in order before I sign on any dotted line.

But I must say, I'm kind of nervous and excited at the same time.

Think we can get it all done by Friday the 15th? I'm not so sure. And even if that happens, the work has really just begun. THIS I KNOW.

DON'T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA

I'm off with two friends tomorrow to visit Buenos Aires, Argentina. With all that's going on, I kind of wish I wasn't going, but if I were to stay here, I'd just get nervous and start fretting about everything. At this point, it's kind of out of my hands anyway. Now it's up to the lawyers, real estate people, etc.

Oh and a little issue about me getting a Brasilian Social Security Number...I applied for that...but we'll see how long it takes.

TROUBLES IN PORTUGUESE TEACHER LAND

At about the end of my lesson today, Nisa asked if she could confide in me...being that I was a PASTOR of my church (she did add many years ago), she felt she could share some things she had not told anyone else.

I panicked...oh no, what is she gonna confide in me...HELP!

She then went into this long story about her male renter and him throwing Fits of RAGE whenever he talks to his wife on the internet...I guess she's left him and took their one child with her and he wants them back but she won't come back (i'm guessing because he has a violent temper when he gets angry). My Portuguese teacher is now facing the brunt of seeing his rage and anger played out. He's busted two laptops (his) and last night he pulled a light fixture from it's spot in the ceiling--in the other renters room--OOPS. And she's a bit worried what he might do if lashing out the next time.

So she was asking me what she should do.

I said, Um, give him a warning...if he does it again, he's out.

That was easy, and no one needs a divinity degree for that one.

EARLY PLANE TO ARGENTINA

I've got to be up by 7 a.m. tomorrow, so gonna check in and head to bed. Night.

Lazy, Hazy, Well More Lazy Day of Brasilian Summer

It was a very relaxing and beautiful day here. Nothing much happened, just one of those nice Sundays where the day has no time constraints and you can rewind and wind up for the week ahead. So I thought I'd just pass along some pictures of Rio.

Enjoy.

Live a Little, Learn a Little

Three things I learned today:

1. Even if someone says there's a public park at the top of this long steep road, um, there isn't always.

2. No matter how deep you dive to avoid a huge wave passing over you, sometimes you still get sucked into it and get sandy water up your nose and ears.

3. Laundry always takes longer to dry online than in a dryer. ALWAYS

NO NEWS IS WHAT NEWS

Nothing on the apartment. Well, I shouldn't say nothing. I asked my realtor in the morning and he thought they'd have a response by the afternoon as he was working today--he would let me know.

By 5 pm. and no word from him, I called him. He answered from the beach, (apparently working all day didn't mean ALL day), and "oh yes, I was gonna call you", but the condo board has to have four people sign...maybe tomorrow.

So again, no news on that so far.

BEANS & RICE

I made my third batch of beans and rice, and while they LOOK DELICIOUS, they taste a bit salty. But I'm not sure which is which..I think it's the rice, but I'm not sure.

Oh well...I'll get better at it.

Other than that, I stayed inside most of the day, cleaning house, doing laundry, and cooking--a woman's work is never done.

And also a little bit of recuperating as well.

That's all folks for today.